Dusk Dark Dawn
by Aevium
Summary: This island didn't have quirks or intrigue. No beauty or joy. It'd been nothing like the rest. - "They hated pirates," Sanji spoke, his eyes trembling with the memory of shrieks and flames. "They hated pirates with mad corruption... and darkness. And I would've gladly watched them all burn." Dark one shot, takes place between TB and SA. Pre-existing ZoSan relationship.


**AN:** Blame _Game of Thrones_ for how terribly dark this fic is. Vaard island is inspired by the general medieval, dark feel of several locations in the series. So, this is the probably the darkest thing I have _ever_ written, and even though I could definitely do much worse by typical fanfic standards, I still feel this is pretty dark. *shrugs* And thus, here is your warning:

**WARNING:** THIS ONESHOT IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART. It deals with **prejudice, murder, intense psychological angst and guilt, violence, language**, etc. Enclosed there also be **smut** of the ZoSan variety. (Right off the bat, too!)

Takes place after Thriller Bark and before Sabaody.

* * *

∙ **Dusk ∙ Dark ∙ Dawn ∙**

* * *

"You're still hurt," Sanji groused sourly as he settled atop Zoro's thighs and tightly grasped their arousals together. It was Zoro's watch tonight—didn't hurt to be here in the crow's nest to keep him from sleeping through it.

"You still mad about that whole thing, cook?" Zoro asked—or rather, droned.

"Don't start with me," Sanji warned, glaring. Then he gave Zoro's cock a squeeze. "Not when I've got your dick in my hand, asshole."

Zoro hissed through his teeth, smirking as he tilted his head up towards Sanji's chin. "I'm not the one who brought it up, curly-cue."

As Sanji snaked an arm around to the middle of Zoro's spine, he leaned into the swordsman's ear to murmur, "Take that back and maybe I'll ride you, grass-head." He emphasized it with a hearty grind from below.

Zoro inhaled loudly through his nose, feeling his cock twitch in longing as Sanji's length slid against his. "Take that back and maybe I'll fuck you, you curly, cocky bastard."

With a devilish expression, Sanji shifted his hips back, then forward again, sending shivers of pleasure up both of their spines. "You're the cocky one here, thinking I want you that bad."

Placing his hand over top of the cook's grip on their erections, Zoro looked up at Sanji in the moonlit darkness, directly into the gleam of his eye and grinned toothily. "But you do."

Sanji felt incredibly hard and his stomach tightened with want as he leaned in behind Zoro's ear to give his upper cartilage a cheeky bite. He confirmed Zoro's words by urgently whispering, "Damn bastard..."

Zoro responded with lips on the cook's neck, and then Sanji began to grind on his lap with an impatient, but serious pace. There were no more words as they moved, breathed and groaned in a pleasurable rhythm. And there was nothing that got Zoro off more than Sanji's frantic hands stroking their cocks together; his eager hips grinding into him; those repressed moans of his as he breathed out in pants; the way he threw back his head when his climax approached.

Sometimes he wondered what the fuck had happened to get them to this point, but it was moments like these that he remembered why it kept happening. Why they kept coming back—magnetized to the other—for more.

Sanji shuddered on top of him and breathed out in fractured groans as he came. But his hands only loitered for seconds; his grinds merely slowed for a moment. He moved his hips into the swordsman and focussed his fingers only on Zoro's shaft and tip.

He felt Zoro's strong hands clutch onto his thighs and watched as Zoro rested his head against the back of the bench. He was thankful that his dick was still tingling as it receded when Zoro stiffened and came between them, because otherwise he might've gone hard again from the sight alone.

Zoro, never one to vocalize his pleasure, happened to release a satisfied sigh tonight and it warmed Sanji to hear it. Sanji didn't realize he was smiling until lips were pressing into his, spreading his smile further. His mouth parted to deepen the kiss and Zoro brought a hand to his jaw, stroking it upwards into Sanji's hair.

They broke and Sanji crawled off of Zoro, taking a spot next to him on the bench circling around the crow's nest. He reached over beside him into the pocket of his discarded pants, pulling out a pack of cigarettes and his lighter. He lit up and settled back to enjoy the bliss that was nicotine filling his lungs.

Zoro, his pants still ungracefully open, crossed his arms over his bare, scarred chest and closed his eyes.

Sanji smirked, finding the sight quite amusing. Zoro looked so quiet, so peaceful and meditative... with his dick blatantly hanging out of his pants.

Sanji lifted one leg to playfully rest his foot against Zoro's thigh. "Nami-san said we should reach a winter island soon, judging by the cold weather lately."

"It's about time," Zoro responded, his eyes still closed. "We've been at sea for nearly three weeks."

"Yeah," Sanji said, frowning. "And we're running dangerously low on supplies. I only hope this island won't be some shitty frozen wasteland."

"Don't worry about it," Zoro said, brushing off Sanji's concerns. "It probably won't be."

Sanji's expression was dull. "That's so like you."

"What is?"

"'_Don't worry about it.' _Yeah, it'll _probably_ be okay. What was it you said back when we were hurtling to our deaths on Rocket Man? 'Leave it to luck'?"

Zoro raised an eyebrow at the cook's sudden outburst. "...I'm just saying, no use worrying about something we can't help."

Sanji scoffed, breathing out smoke into the stuffy air. "What will you do when your luck runs out on you, hm?"

"You already know the answer to that," Zoro responded stoically, his bones and muscles still overwrought with ache from their latest adventure on Thriller Bark. "And I don't rely on luck," he added, but then broke into a crooked grin. "...much."

Sanji laughed. "You're nothing but a whimsical bastard, you know that?"

"Hm," Zoro hummed, his smirk unrelenting. "Last time you called me a bastard, you were moaning into my ear."

The sole of Sanji's foot met him straight in the head, pushing him roughly onto his side on the bench. By the time he sat back up to return the favour, Sanji was already standing, hastily kicking his legs through the sleeves of his pants. Then, the cook turned around to face him in the moonlight.

"Just watch the goddamn ship, all right? You good-for-nothing marimo."

Zoro reached out and caught Sanji's arm before the cook had the chance to walk. "Let me correct that for you," he announced before blatantly grabbing and groping Sanji's crotch. Sanji squirmed under his grip before shoving his intrusive hand away. "Apparently, I'm good for _something_."

His face flushed and probably beet red, Sanji fiercely turned around and stomped off towards the ladder leading down to the deck. He fired behind him, "I fucking swear that's the last time you'll touch my dick."

"I'm not too worried," Zoro replied, his tone practically laughing as he echoed his earlier indifference. "It probably won't be."

Sanji practically snarled as he made his way down the ladder. "You make it so easy for me to hate you," he grumbled.

Zoro gave a subtle smile as the cook's blond head disappeared below the hole. He turned, placing an arm over the back of the couch and looked out the window to the sea under moonlight.

Well, he now knew that probably wasn't true either.

* * *

It was around dusk when Usopp heard a distant whistle in the air and saw the flare.

As it blazed up from the wintry island skyline and then dipped down before losing its strength, Usopp pointed and cried to his crew: "Everyone, look! The flare!"

It exploded with a final crackle and Luffy shouted: "Sanji's in trouble!"

The Straw Hats were bustling on the ship in seconds.

"Franky! Turn the ship to port and put the paddles on full speed!" Nami ordered.

"Aye-aye!" the enthusiastic cyborg complied.

Zoro observed the stream-line of smoke from the flare, and then noticed below it a darker, thicker plume of menacing smoke. There was a distant echo of crowds shouting, crying, and cheering. Feeling unsettled, he didn't take his eyes off of that island until they were at its shores many minutes later.

Swiftly leaping over the gunwale, Luffy and Zoro were the first ones to land in the frigid shores before rushing onto cold, hardened sand.

That familiar, eerie sign hammered to a tree stump seemed to glare at them all as they heard shouts in the distance and felt the rumble of rushing footsteps. They walked up to forest trail and those shouts suddenly became deafening and the rumbling steps became thundering and vicious.

Luffy paused, as did his crew, when Sanji emerged practically leaping over the top of the hill leading down to the beach. He sprinted down, stumbling on jutting rocks on the way and panting like he'd just run a marathon.

"Sanji—!" Luffy shouted.

"Go! Go!" Sanji yelled, and it was when he drew closer that they noticed the bruises and blood, as well as the ash smeared over his cloak and skin. "We need to leave _now!"_

He was leaning on his knees as he finally stopped in front of them to breathe, and it was then that the battle cries of vicious men pierced the cold air with clarity. They emerged over the hill in _numbers_ and Luffy understood why they needed to get out _now._

He turned back to Franky and ordered, "Franky, get the Sunny ready to get outta here, fast! We'll hold them off for now!"

"Will do, Mugiwara-bro! _Super!_"

There was something about these men that Zoro could feel in his bones which made them more dangerous than normal. The way they yelled as they poured down the hill, emerging from the forest and onto the shores... it was like a wave of hatred was about to crash over them all. And given what they knew about this island, this was definitely the case.

It was when the wave crashed into them and the fight began that Zoro knew something was off about the cook. Sanji fought with an unmatched fury as the men went down like flies under his blazing kicks.

He fought with an animalistic snarl and an enraged look in his eye that seemed to reflect all of this island's hatred back at them in one man alone. When the Sunny was ready to blast away from this accursed place and Luffy ordered them to retreat and Sanji just kept pummelling them under the soles of his shoes, unhearing and unaware amidst his blitz of rage, rage, _rage—_this was when Zoro knew something was very, _very_ wrong here.

Most of the crew were back on the drifting Sunny, ready to go but Sanji wouldn't leave until every last one of them had felt the fire of his kicks.

"Zoro, get him and let's go!" Luffy ordered, swinging his arm around, preparing to stretch it onto the Sunny.

Zoro rushed over to the cook, who was in a trance of repeatedly kicking a man in the stomach. He took care of the attackers surrounding Sanji, who apparently hadn't even noticed them there, and grabbed the furious blond around the waist.

"Fucking _bastards!"_ Sanji cried, his voice cracking as he struggled and kicked out, wanting to finish off this sickening fuck who he couldn't even call a man. All of them weren't men, just wearing the skin of men. "_Murderers!"_

"Oi, cook!" Zoro shouted, tugging him back with one arm and blocking attacks with the other. "Snap out of it! Let's go before we're killed!"

Sanji didn't respond, just breathed heavily like he was in horrible pain and tugged away from Zoro's grip. He turned around and rushed over to Luffy, knocking more of his attackers to the cold ground when they dared get in his way. Luffy had already cleared the men around him—they were all lying on the shore, some of their faces being licked by frigid waters—so it didn't take much effort for Zoro and Sanji to grab onto him and spring back to the Sunny.

They landed roughly and in a pile, as usual, before they heard Nami's voice.

"Okay, we're all here! Everyone hold onto something! Let's go, Franky!"

"Coup de _Burst!"_

And then the Sunny soared, away from this wretched island whose hatred for pirates knew no bounds; an entire island's vendetta which Sanji had the displeasure of witnessing through haunting flames and screams.

* * *

They arrived at the winter island hours earlier while the sun was still up, beaming proudly in the afternoon. It was a winter island during its summer, so the snow only peppered the land in dips and grooves, and the air was crisp but not overwhelmingly cold. The island seemed to be one giant hill surrounded by forests, and at the peak of the hill they could see civilization with the hinting tips of a castle.

They were in desperate need of supplies and had not reached any other island in three weeks. This island was isolated by stretches and stretches of sea. It was their only option, and their desperation was the reason they took the risk, even after Brook had spotted the eerie sign hammered to a tree trunk.

"'Pirate scum, sail off. Enter now and be burned alive,'" Brook read, and then added a shocked, "Oh, my."

"How welcoming," Robin quipped with a chuckle.

Usopp's knees were practically clacking together as he and Nami clutched each other in fear.

"That's not welcoming at all!" Nami cried.

"Isn't there another island we can go to? One that won't try to murder us!?" Usopp exclaimed, his voice shaking.

"This is the only one, unless you want to sail back out and starve to death," Zoro bluntly stated.

"We'll just have to _super_ deal with it!"

Sanji added, "We'll just try to pick up as much as well can. Enough to survive until the next island."

Luffy leaned back, his palm on his straw hat, and beamed. "It'll be fun!" he proclaimed with an enthusiastic laugh.

Nami zoomed over and caught him by the throat, throttling him. "It most certainly will not! Do you have any idea what will happen to us if we get caught? Burned alive! I'm too cute to die like that! And if they burn me, they'll burn my belli too! I won't let that happen, and furthermore..."

As she rambled on, Usopp, Franky, Zoro and Chopper glared at her with dull expressions and waved their hands. "That _really_ should be the least of your worries," they said unanimously.

"Hold on," Robin cut in, who'd been staring at the gruesome warning sign for some time now. "I recall reading about the history of this place."

Everyone turned to her in silence, encouraging her to continue.

"This is Vaard Island. It's notorious for being susceptible to pirate attacks and raids because of its isolated location. Many pirates who have drifted to this place in the past often had been at sea for many weeks, maybe even months. The accumulation of starvation and the frustration of being away from land for such a prolonged period of time increases their hostility. Thus, many would raid and attack them, looting, killing, burning down homes and buildings... the people here truly have become a victim to their location. Through their history, this place has become more and more hostile towards pirates and today, well... Vaard is probably one of the few islands where despising pirates is a part of their culture. We will not be an exception here, even if we come as good-natured customers."

Usopp moaned. "Great, the _one_ island we land on happens to be full of crazy pirate killers!"

"I wouldn't call their rage completely unjustified, but it is a little primitive. Which might make sense because they haven't been able to advance much as a society due to the attacks," Robin added. "Their psychology is probably just as primitive."

"Well, the longer we stay here and chat about it, the more likely they'll notice our ship," Zoro pointed out. "We'd better come up with a plan."

"Nico Robin, do you think they're advanced enough to recognize us through our wanted posters?" Franky asked.

"In my opinion, an island that has such a negative history with pirates would undoubtedly try to pay attention to wanted posters. They are under Government rule, so they must get the newspapers. I hate to suggest this, but Luffy, it would be wise to lower our jolly roger."

"I refuse! A jolly roger is a pirate's pride!" Luffy said sternly, his arms crossed.

Robin smirked, understanding.

But Nami wouldn't give up so easily. "Luffy, we've got no other choice. If they spot us, we'll be forced to sail out or worse, we'll be captured."

"If they attack us, we'll just fight back, that's all," the captain said stubbornly.

"Luffy-san, we may be a strong crew, but I don't know how we'd fare with an entire island against us..." Brook tentatively put in.

"We've done it before," Luffy informed, giving a knowing glance to both Robin and Brook. Brook hadn't been there during their gusty war against the World Government establishment of Enies Lobby, but he'd at least seen their power on Thriller Bark. "We'll do it again."

Robin nodded with a subtle smile. "While I agree we could probably struggle our way through and come out of it alive, it really wouldn't be wise to pick a fight with these people. We should at least try an alternative plan, sneak in to buy our supplies and if things go bad, we'll do it your way, Luffy."

"Hmm," Luffy hummed in thought. "What kind of plan?"

"First of all, we would definitely need to lower our flag. I'm sorry, Luffy. But we have a new ship now and there's a good chance they won't recognize it as a pirate ship if we take down our jolly roger."

Chopper was at Luffy's feet. "We can put it back up as we leave! It won't be for long, Luffy."

"Fine," Luffy conceded, sounding conflicted. "If it's just for now, it's okay. And it's worth it for food. Chopper, go lower it."

"And hide it in the storage room," Sanji reminded the little reindeer as Chopper nodded and made his way to the ship. The cook lit up a cigarette, staring into the forest at a trail leading uphill. "Now, the other issue is that they'll recognize us. Do we put on cheap disguises?" he asked with slight jest.

Nami thought aloud, "We'll definitely be more suspicious in greater numbers..." She frowned, a pensive finger on her chin. "As backwards as this sounds, I think it might be safer to only send in one or two of us."

"I think that may work. I wouldn't imagine them being threatened by one person, let alone feel the need to investigate," Brook concluded.

"But... who goes?" Zoro asked.

"We're not going to draw straws again, are we...?" Usopp wondered aloud, practically shaking at the thought of going into the belly of the beast all by himself.

"No, we need to think carefully about this," Nami advocated. "We need to send in somebody strong who won't do something stupid." At this, she glared at Luffy and Zoro, who both responded with an innocent '_what?'_ "Also, someone who will be able to get the supplies fast and get out of there. Someone who knows what we need." Her gaze, along with everyone else's, started to flicker towards Sanji.

The cook looked around at everyone and felt appreciative of the cigarette breathing nicotine into him at that moment. "I get it, I get it..."

"It makes sense," Nami ruled. "You may be an idiot sometimes, Sanji-kun, but you know how to be invisible when it matters, and you know what we need the most out of everyone."

"Your compliments are too kind, Nami-swan~! I won't let you down!"

"As long as boobs don't get in your way, I'm sure you won't. Now, you'll only be buying things of the utmost importance. For instance, I need more perfume, and bath soaps, and some cute new shorts..."

"Absolutely, Nami-san!"

Usopp and Chopper—who was now finished stowing away their jolly roger—gaped in shock. "None of those are important at all!"

"Just get some food, cook. And some booze."

"Shut it, marimo! I don't take orders from you!"

"You're being selfish too, Zoro!" Usopp and Chopper cried.

Luffy, who had been cackling in the background, calmed and stuck his finger up his nose with a pensive hum. "Well, I approve. Sanji's the best one for the job, and his wanted poster doesn't even look like him so he won't be recognized!"

Usopp snorted and then burst into a short, odd laugh. "Hey, I forgot about that!"

"He definitely won't be recognized!" Chopper piped in.

"He'll slip right past them all," Brook agreed with an enthusiastic nod.

"He'll be _super_ undetectable!" Franky proclaimed, striking a pose.

Zoro simply let out a short, condescending chuckle while Luffy was clutching his stomach in a massive fit of laughter.

Stomping on the hard, cold sand, Sanji was red with what he considered 'fury'. "Shut up, all of you! Damn! Show a little appreciation for the risk I'm taking here, you shitty ungrateful—"

"Sanji-kun, focus."

"Yes, Nami-san!"

"You'll have to make more than one trip since you're by yourself. Can you handle that?"

"Of course, Nami-san!"

"Good, then we'll sail ourselves further away from the island. We don't want anyone spying around here and recognizing us. When you return here with the supplies, leave them here and we'll get them with the Mini Merry," the red-head suggested. "Also, can someone go into our safety kit and get the flare gun?" Usopp nodded and obliged. "If you're in trouble, Sanji-kun, you signal us with that. Okay?"

Sanji nodded and called after Usopp. "Bring a backpack down too, Usopp!"

The sharpshooter returned with more than just those two requests. A coat and a cloak with a hood.

"Put these on," Usopp said, offering Sanji the coat, the dark grey cloak and the backpack. When Sanji did, he pulled up the hood. "Try not to make your hair so obvious. Being blond is too distinguishable, and it's one of the few things you have in common with your wanted poster."

"You _want_ to be kicked?" Sanji growled out.

Usopp patted the cook's hooded head and replied with a nervous laugh. "I'm just trying help, Sanji-kun~ no need to get so hostile..."

Minutes later, everyone but Sanji, Zoro and Luffy had retreated to the ship.

"We'll keep an eye-out for you, Sanji!" Usopp said, waving.

"Be careful!" Chopper shouted.

There were a few snowflakes noticeably lofting in the air as the sun had now been cloaked over by a burst of cloud.

"Get lots of meat, Sanji!" Luffy ordered, patting Sanji on the shoulder.

"You..." Sanji's voice was flat. His idiot captain didn't realize how serious his situation could become, did he? "I'm not taking menu orders. I'll grab whatever's edible in record time."

"But you'll try to get lots, right?"

Sanji sighed. "Fine. I'll try, Luffy."

Luffy laughed. "Good! I trust you!" And with a hearty pat on the back and a smile, his captain stretched his arm and bounced back onto the Sunny with the others.

Zoro remained standing, looking almost kind of vacant as Sanji turned to the forest trail.

Sanji quietly asked behind him. "What are you lingering for, shitty swordsman?"

Frowning with a hand on the hilt of Wado, he mumbled out, "Don't do anything stupid. Just get in there and get out as fast as you can."

"Ohh," Sanji practically sang. "Worried, are you?"

"Stupid cook," Zoro said gruffly. "Thought I told you I don't worry."

"Thought I told you you're just a whimsical bastard."

"Heh," Zoro chuckled and turned around to face the ship. He said over his shoulder as he walked away. "Just do your job so we can get the hell out of here."

Sanji scoffed at him, but then placed his full attention on the trail ahead.

"Yeah..." he murmured to himself with a growling stomach. "Will do, I guess."

* * *

When their ship landed back on water, far, far away from Vaard, Chopper rushed around to check for injuries. Fortunately no one sustained anything serious, besides Sanji who had a head wound and might've been suffering internal bleeding in his abdominal region for reasons unknown to the little reindeer—after all, he along with the rest of them had witnessed Sanji just now. Their cook had been _untouchable_.

Zoro watched in the background as many of them asked Sanji about what had happened on Vaard. Sanji merely said he didn't want to talk about it and that he should take a shower and get dinner ready now that they had some proper food. Everyone, even Luffy, felt unsettled by his answer, but otherwise left him alone.

Whatever happened, whatever Sanji had seen or experienced, it wasn't something he wanted to even think about, let alone discuss. This meant it must have been horrific, and everyone knew.

Chopper insisted on bandaging Sanji up after his shower. Sanji let him without much complaint. And then the cook was in the kitchen, locked up in there by himself until dinner was finished.

Zoro knew that Sanji had eaten the least while they'd been running low on food this past week. In fact, he was pretty sure the cook hadn't been ingesting anything but fluids and cigarettes for the past three days. So when Sanji didn't eat at dinner—didn't even set aside anything for himself for later like he usually did—Zoro began to get truly concerned.

He didn't talk much with anyone, other than his beloved Nami-san and Robin-chan, because even if he'd experienced something mentally scarring _of course _he could never deprive them of his slavery! He didn't make much eye contact either, but when he did... there was a scary, haunted sort of emptiness staring back.

Vaard had taken something from their cook. Something that Zoro refused to be robbed of.

But Sanji was lost for now, and all they could really do was wait for him to return.

* * *

The trek to the town wasn't too perilous or long, but it was still tiring because it was uphill. And when Sanji finally arrived to an entrance—a tall, charcoaled brick wall with two large, arched oak doors—he swallowed heavily. Perched atop this entrance was an inscription boldly carved into the wall. It said: '_No pirate shall come out alive.'_

What, was that their fucking motto or something?

But what was truly disturbing were the charred heads on spikes jutting out horizontally from the wall and spanning down far distances to his left and right. It didn't take much imagination for him to recognize that these faceless, burned heads belonged to pirates. He fumbled around for a cigarette while slowly ambling towards the entrance, where two sentries stood clad in armour with long spears perched in the dirt.

Sanji tightened his grip around his hood and stepped up to them. They glared at him for an awkward length of time and just as he was about to speak up—without really knowing what to say—they began their interrogation.

"Who are you and what's your purpose here?" said the one on the right.

Sanji had thought of a false name long before they'd asked for it. "My name is Jean." He rubbed the back of his head. "I'm just a sailor who's been at sea a little too long. I'm a humble customer in need of food."

"What kind of sailor?"

"An explorer, and a bit of an exporter, from time to time."

"Do you sail alone?"

"I have a crew, but to show you we're harmless I've come to shop alone." Sanji wondered if telling them he had a crew was smart or not, but he figured if he was going in to shop for nine people—_Luffy_ included—then it would be smart to tell them he had a crew upfront.

"Where are you from?"

"Me? I'm from the Vernes Islands," he lied, though it could've been the truth for all he knew. "In North Blue." Well, that wasn't a lie.

The two sentries scrutinized him some uncomfortable moments more before they lifted their spears and slammed them down twice, stepping and turning to face each other, freeing up the entrance. He could hear loud gears creaking together and the door slowly opened.

"You may enter," the sentry on the left said.

Sanji would've sighed if he wasn't on such constant guard. His heart racing, he entered the town on cobblestone steps. The city was a mix of fresh, strongly built houses and buildings which must have been new; bricks walls which were seared and coated with blackness from previous raids no doubt; and structures which were in ruins, reduced to mere ashes and bits of wood poking out from the ground.

Scouting the area down for signs of the market, Sanji decided to follow the hustle of the crowd. The city was practically exploding with anti-pirate propaganda; flags and banners everywhere that were basically there to feed hatred and fear into their people every day at every hour.

'_Pirates break our walls! destroy our homes! steal our food and gold! slaughter our people! rape our women!'_

'_Pirates deserve no mercy!'_

'_Become a knight and shield your home from pirate scum!'_

'_Pirates found within these walls shan't escape!'_

'_Traitors shall be burned at the stake!'_

And it went on like this. It didn't help when he spotted the cement stage in an open section of the city with a fire pit and metal stake situated in the centre. Consciously ignoring it, Sanji focussed at the task at hand.

When he made it to the market, he filled his backpack to the brim with raw meats, vegetables, and fruits. He carried the rest in two sacks they'd offered him with the purchases, and he realized he would probably need to make another two trips to obtain even a survivable amount of food for their next stretch on the sea.

On his way back, he was thankful that the Sunny had its own water filtering system, because carrying barrels of water down this hill by himself would've been torturous. When he returned to the beach, he squinted and searched for the Sunny. It was way out in the distance, far enough to make it hard for him to spot, but he noticed the Mini Merry floating closer to the shores, waiting. He couldn't see who was inside of it other than Franky, since the cyborg was such an obvious sight. He emptied out his backpack and left the food and remaining bags towards the back of the beach. It felt strange to just leave it like that, but he was sure nothing could happen to it before they got to the shores to retrieve it.

So he began the trek all over again. But with an empty backpack it wasn't so bad and he was thankful that he didn't have to travel uphill while packed to the brim with supplies. However, halfway into his trek, when he heard rustling and sticks breaking to his left in the forest, he halted and waited with bated breath.

He looked around and when an adolescent boy dressed in green and brown emerged, Sanji observed him suspiciously. And he knew he had every reason in the world to distrust this boy.

It was a rather curious silence that followed as the auburn-haired boy observed him with wide brown eyes. The kid had a rather ugly set of scars; three lines stretching parallel across the left side of his face. Then the boy stepped forward, and Sanji stepped back, looking around. Did he have an army ready to fight behind these damnable trees?

Finally, the kid spoke. And they were bold words. "I know you're a pirate."

Sanji didn't let his fast heart rate affect his outward reaction. "But... you're wrong, kid," he stated with a short chuckle.

The boy gave a knowing smirk. "You are. That's why you're looking around to see from which direction you'll get attacked, isn't it?"

His eyes narrowed. Smart little shit, wasn't he? Two could play at this game. "You would only need the mistaken belief that I'm a pirate for me to be burned alive, am I wrong?"

"You're not wrong," the boy said. "But I saw your jolly roger before you guys took it down."

Sanji's eyes widened, his hand flickering to the flare gun attached to his side. Okay, _now_ it was time to take this seriously.

"I know you won't kill me," the boy declared.

"This isn't for killing," Sanji responded, backtracking and searching the trees for movement. He would find out if it was worth it to signal his crew for help in this ensuing fight. "How many are there?"

The boy drew closer and laughed.

* * *

That night, Zoro awoke to the sound of Sanji sitting up in his bunk. He watched the cook's dark form beside him, breathing laboriously and clutching his forehead. And then the cook slid out of his bunk and left the room. Curious, Zoro sat up as he heard the door shut and remained there for a while before deciding to follow the cook out.

On the main deck, Sanji was sitting on the curved staircase, his feet on the grass as he lit a cigarette. He lifted his head when Zoro came tentatively closer, and then looked away like the swordsman wasn't worth his time.

"You're not eating, you're not sleeping," Zoro stated. "What bodily need will you take away next?"

"I don't need you lecturing me," Sanji spat back at him coldly. "I thought you didn't worry."

"Just tell me what happened."

Sanji laughed. He actually laughed. It wasn't joyful; it was a bitter sort of laugh through his teeth, one that tore right through Zoro's chest. "Don't start thinking you're _that_ special just because we fuck from time to time. You don't need to know what happened."

Zoro was silent. Sanji's words had said it all; had stolen his own words right off his tongue in his shock. But he never showcased that surprise in his face. And Sanji was right, he never worried. So he turned around, headed back to their sleeping quarters, and left Sanji to sulk with his cigarette.

* * *

The boy drew closer and laughed with a sort of angelic smile that left Sanji feeling confused and tricked.

"Zero."

"What...?" Sanji said, baffled.

"None, there's no men in these trees. At least, none that I know of."

His eyes vexed with creasing brows, Sanji looked to the boy, incredulous. "Why would you tell me you know I'm a pirate when you're here all by yourself? Don't you realize what I could do to you?"

"But you won't do anything to me," the boy asserted, his tone all-knowing as usual. "Because I know you're not a bad man, and I won't tell anyone that you're a pirate."

Sanji nearly laughed. "And how am I supposed to trust you to keep your word?"

"I could've told on you a long time ago. But I was there, in the trees, when you and your crew arrived. I'm a scouter. They have boys hiding all around in these forests by the beaches, ready to run back and warn the knights when pirates arrive. But you and your crew... I overheard you talking. You guys are good, aren't you?"

Sanji, still suspicious, didn't keep his eyes in one place. He continued to search the trees. "We're just here to buy food. That's all and then we'll be gone."

"But you're good pirates, right?"

The cook stared at the boy for a lingering moment. "We are," he finally answered.

"Then you have my word," the boy declared, and even gave a little bow. "I won't tell a soul."

Sanji was quiet as he studied the boy closely. "This is kind of awkward," he stated. "I don't know whether I should turn back now and leave, or keep going and trust your word."

"That's up to you I guess," the kid said, shrugging. "But you'll need more food than what you bought, won't you? I can show you where to buy the best bread."

Sanji laughed. It was like the kid was trying to do a sales pitch. "You have to tell me why. Why should I trust you _not_ to lead me up there to hundreds of men waiting to kill me? I thought, on this island, no pirate is good."

"But good pirates do exist," the boy stated it like it was fact. "It's just that no one here really believes that."

"What about all that propaganda in your city? Seeing that every day, how can you possibly know that good pirates exist?"

"Because I was saved by one, once," the boy elaborated. "He saved me from a bear in the forest while I was scouting. And he even gave me a gold coin after he drove the bear away. He told me he was a pirate and then kept on up into the city. I never told on him, and that day, I realized that not all pirates are bad. And ever since, I listen and gauge pirates when they arrive. If I think they're a threat, I warn the knights. If I think they're harmless, I give them a chance." Then he added, "They tell us on this island that all pirates are scum; all pirates murder and burn down homes and rape and pillage. They even tell us that pirates eat human flesh."

What a harsh place to live in, for a boy of perhaps only ten or eleven to know all of these horrible realities in the world, even if things weren't so black and white. But this boy seemed to know this; he knew a little bit more of the world. He seemed to have witnessed some good in the world, too. This was what made him, perhaps, more trustworthy than Sanji had first anticipated.

"The only one who was going to eat my flesh was that bear, and a pirate saved me from that. I only came out with these scars." He pointed to the scars on the left side of his freckled face. "So I don't believe all pirates are bad, and I don't believe you're bad, and I'm willing to help you find whatever you need," he concluded with a smile.

"You're a gutsy kid, I'll give you that," Sanji admitted with a sigh. Was he crazy to even think about going along with this? Was he simply desperate to believe that there was still a scrap of good on this island in the form of this boy? "If you go back on your word, kid, you'll create more trouble for your home than it's worth."

"Believe me, I know. The Straw Hat pirates took down Enies Lobby, didn't you?" he asked with a grin as they began walking up the trail.

"You know who we are, too?" Sanji asked with a laugh.

"Sure, I saw your jolly roger, remember?"

Sanji chuckled. They really should have been quicker about taking that down, but they hadn't known what kind of island they were disembarking on, and the scouter had probably seen it long before they'd understood where they were. "Damn, how old are you, kid?"

"Thirteen."

"You're small for your age."

"Don't remind me."

"I was like that too. You'll grow," Sanji remarked. "What your name?"

"Cole. And which one are you?"

"Heh," Sanji smirked. "Sanji. But you should just call me Jean while I'm here."

"Black Leg Sanji? You're the one with the hilarious wanted poster! You look _nothing_ like that thing!" Cole ridiculed.

Sanji's eyebrow twitched and he dug into his pocket for a much needed cigarette. "Careful. I just might kill you if you keep that up."

Cole gave a cheeky grin. "No you won't."

* * *

The next morning, Sanji had finished preparing breakfast early due to his difficulty falling asleep. He was slightly back to his old self—other than the fact that he was so clearly drained—but he did eat a little at breakfast which secretly satisfied Zoro. But Sanji returning back to 'normal' felt far too bittersweet to Zoro. There was something aching within the cook for release.

Sanji was bottling some serious rage and sadness within him. Zoro could tell. The others could, probably, too. But Sanji didn't want anyone to know, or question it, so he was beginning to put on this act. A false act to get everyone to believe that he was okay.

Zoro could understand this. He wasn't the talkative type in similar situations. He and the cook still hadn't talked much about what had gone down at Thriller Bark, and they probably never would. He only knew that Sanji wasn't happy with what had happened, but the cook must've known that Zoro didn't have much to say about it. His sacrificial actions must have spoken true enough, after all.

This, however, was different. Nobody knew what exactly had gone down on Vaard. And Sanji had experienced it alone. Bottling that kind of darkness, with the intensity and rage that Sanji did, must have been nothing but lonely and self-destructive.

He didn't care if Sanji was determined to say nothing. Zoro was going to get it out of him as long as he kept witnessing this act of his. This false front that was practically screaming: _I'm not okay. I am __**not**__ okay!_

And the cook wasn't okay. Sanji was far from okay. And this sadness and anger brewing in the cook was pretty damn far from okay for Zoro, too.

* * *

Sanji was deeply relieved when they re-entered the city and there was no attack waiting for him. Still, he kept his guard up, even as Cole took him by the hand and led him to the best bakery in town.

He gathered items much faster with Cole than without, and managed to obtain more meat, more fruits and vegetables, flour and other such unanticipated baking ingredients and even some good wines and beer. He also had more hands with Cole around, and could take back much more.

Sanji figured he would've been captured and burned to a crisp right about now if Cole had been deceiving him. Unless the kid was a nasty fucker who liked to toy with his victims by giving them false hopes. But, somehow, he wasn't getting that sort of vibe from a boy with such a genuinely angelic smile. Even if he could be a cheeky bastard when the mood struck.

They were outside the walls again, making their way down the trail, and Sanji began to learn more about him with a simple, searching question.

"Why are you a pirate?"

"You know," Sanji said, glancing around, "I'm just wondering if people are listening in the trees. You're not the only scouter, right?"

"Yeah, but this is my designated zone, along this trail," Cole clarified. "Trust me, there's no one. But..." he began to speak in a taunting whisper. "...you can lower your voice if you're scared."

"Shitty brat," Sanji shot. The kid merely stuck out his tongue at him. Was this how Zeff had felt around him when he was a kid? Sanji shook his head and decided to answer Cole's question. "Why am I a pirate? To make my dream come true. All of us on the crew, we're all searching for something. I guess it's the freedom we like, too."

"So..." Cole drifted in thought. "If I wanted to follow my dream, I should become a pirate?"

Sanji chuckled lightly. "You don't _have_ to. A simple sailor or traveller would work too. But, a pirate gets more freedom if you're tough enough to avoid the law. We're free, out there, on the sea."

Cole nodded. "I've always loved the ocean. Sometimes, when I scout, I just like to sit there and stare at it, just for hours." He avoided a rather threatening rock and frowned in contemplation. "I've always... wanted to explore it."

"I was like that as a kid, too. I grew up on the sea, but I never really got to see much of it. Not like I am now." Now, he was seeing so much of the sea he felt overwhelmed by it every day. Sanji couldn't begin to imagine how incredible it would feel once he reached All Blue. "You'll see it, someday."

"We're not really supposed to," Cole admitted, sounding more downtrodden now. "They say leaving this island is like abandoning our people and our home. That's how you become a traitor. And leaving to become a pirate... well, you can imagine that's the worst kind of betrayal there is."

The blond frowned, mulling his words over. "So get a boat and become a traitor. Hell, stowaway on someone's ship for all I care. You're too smart for this place, kid. Way too smart."

Cole was silent and Sanji studied him as he looked conflicted. And then he understood.

"You've got a family... don't you?"

"Yeah. My mom and my older brother," Cole admitted.

"And you love them?" Sanji inquired.

Cole looked up at Sanji with honest brown eyes. "More than anything."

"Stick around them, bear this place a little longer, and when you're older and confident enough, get out of here and sail. If your family wants to stay behind at that point... well, that's a choice you'll have to make."

"Freedom over family... that sounds so awful," Cole surmised with a bitter smile.

If Sanji had a hand to spare, he would've given the boy a pat on the shoulder. "It'll be a hard choice to make, but I'm telling you the truth when I say this: there's a hell of a lot to see in this world, and this place isn't exactly the best of it."

And Cole had to laugh, because even if he'd been nowhere else in his life, it wasn't hard for him to understand that this was a stone cold truth.

* * *

Zoro was prodded awake the next night and when he opened his eyes, he saw the cook at the side of his bunk, whispering to him and beckoning the swordsman to follow him. He didn't know what this meant, but it was the first time Sanji had touched him since the incident at Vaard and that said something positive.

The cook led him to the aquarium room. As soon as they were by the sofas, Sanji was on him like fire to a spark. The cook kissed him along his lips, cheeks, neck and shoulder, forcing Zoro to sit and let him touch. His hands were slithering down his chest and abdomen, and suddenly Sanji's hand was down his pants. It was all moving so fast and Zoro had to wonder what the hell was happening; why Sanji was this frantic and desperate all of a sudden.

It was like the spark had so rapidly escalated into an explosion and it made his head spin.

He didn't like it. It wasn't right. This wasn't right.

"Cook, what—"

But Sanji silenced him with his lips. "Shh."

* * *

Sanji and Cole dropped the next load of purchases off at the beach and then began the hike back up.

"How many more trips will you need?" Cole asked.

"Just this one last time, I think, and then I'll be out of here. You've helped me out a lot," Sanji replied, his tone kind and grateful.

"It's no problem," Cole said sheepishly. "Happy to help a good man, after all."

"You're gonna make me blush, damn brat," Sanji teased, laughing.

This whole experience had turned out much better than planned. The only downside was the gathered knowledge that such a place existed in the world. But Cole's existence here was hopeful to him and he truly did want the kid to find his happiness, and his freedom. Having to stick it out here until adulthood wouldn't be cakewalk, but at least he'd get there someday.

When they arrived at the city for their last round of shopping, the knights were waiting for them, hidden in the crowds. And when they walked past the execution stand, someone grabbed Sanji's hood and pulled it down. He turned and faced a tall knight clad in elaborate armour who tugged him into custody by the arm.

"Black Leg Sanji of the Straw Hat pirates!" the knight shouted. People in the crowds began to turn their heads and whisper.

Sanji's eyes widened.

"You're to be executed for contaminating our city with your despicable presence!"

Despite cursing himself inwardly for being such an idiotic, gullible fool to actually believe in Cole, Sanji quipped, "What, not even a trial?"

And thus with the following takedown of the knight who dared touch him, the chaos began.

* * *

The cook's fingers were stroking him so euphorically that, even though something was definitely off here, Zoro couldn't resist when his body complied with Sanji's flow. It was like he was trying to get him hard as fast as possible, and it was _working_.

But as Sanji moved swiftly, frantically and almost—dare he say it, _angrily_, Zoro couldn't help but notice that the cook was somewhere else. He wasn't here.

* * *

Sanji kicked and moved furiously. Though it was hard to land a good strike on men who were covered in armour, he was still able to slam them to the ground by hooking around and kicking at their weak spots. And with all of that armour, it was pitiful how long it took them to climb back up. But he soon halted everything.

"We've got ourselves a traitor, folks!"

His eyes widened as he whipped around and saw Cole being dragged to the stand. Wait—he wasn't...?

"Got anything to say for yourself, _traitor?"_

"I didn't know!" Cole cried out. "I didn't know he was a pirate, I swear!"

"Ain't it your job to know if he's a pirate or not, scouter boy?"

Sanji almost blacked out when he was struck in the head with the armguard of some asshole's armour. A slamming metal boot to his stomach which rushed the air out of his lungs, and he was edging on unconsciousness for enough time to be restrained. They tied his wrists up behind him and struck him in the stomach again before slamming their fists into his face. Then he was carried to the execution stand. He looked to Cole, who was panicked as they retrained him to the metal stake.

The crowds were gathering and their cheers bled true fear into Sanji then.

* * *

"Oi, cook, what—"

"_Shh._"

Zoro shuddered in pleasure when the blond began to touch his balls and lick wet circles around his nipples. His erection was bulging out of his pants with Sanji's frantic attentions, and the swordsman was in such a state of confusion and heated arousal that he didn't even know how to react when Sanji began to tug off his own pants with a free hand.

When Sanji slipped off his pants and boxers and poised himself over Zoro's hard cock, Zoro looked down to notice that the cook was still hopelessly flaccid. What the fuck...? He stared up into his blue eyes, which were hazed and unfocussed—_haunted. _

No, Sanji wasn't here at all.

He was _there_.

* * *

Sanji struggled against the two men holding him down on his knees. The soles of their boots were pressing down on Sanji's calves, making it hard for him to move. A torch was lit, and one of the armoured men restraining him leaned down to his ear and taunted, "You're next."

"Fuck you!" Sanji spat, struggling once more.

"You've been aware of pirate scum entering and leaving our city for a while, traitorous boy. We've caught onto you're treachery and this vile man is your latest betrayal, isn't he?" the man with the torch said, circling around his pray.

Cole was shaking as he watched that flame move around him. "No, I didn't know he was a pirate..."

He was backhanded. "Foolish boy, did you think we wouldn't find out? And that when we did, we wouldn't have scouters investigating _you_?"

Sanji could see the pure defeat on Cole's face. Dammit—_shit—_if only he could...!

"Traitors deserve to be burned like a pirate, dear boy. Just like they burn down our city, time and time again."

The crowd was going wild, jeering and cheering the executioner on.

"Please, I didn't know! _Please!"_

"Don't you dare do it!" Sanji finally shouted. "You're really going to _burn_ a child for helping me _shop _in your city!? Untie him and put me up there, you dumb shit!"

"Believe me, _pirate_, you're going to be next for stepping _foot_ on our island!"

And the cheers hopelessly went on.

* * *

Sanji sunk down on Zoro's cock, taking him in fully, and Zoro groaned when the cook lifted himself back up, then plunged down again. It felt so good... it took all of Zoro's willpower to keep up his feeble attempt at words; at moral obligation.

"Cook..."

Let alone words which told the cook to stop. But when he saw that Sanji was not getting any harder—that he was far from being truly into this—he settled on that lost expression above and suddenly it didn't seem so difficult. Suddenly it became only natural to him.

"Stop, you're not even—"

"Be quiet," Sanji ordered, riding him more fiercely. "Just let me..." His brows tightened up in agony as his breathing began to quiver. He hung his head and let it hover above Zoro's shoulder and firmly shut his eyes.

* * *

"_Stop...!"_

The torch was dropped. And the flames were vicious. But the screams were the most _agonizing_ to hear_._

"No, no—_NO!"_ Sanji cried as the flames and wails grew stronger. He struggled madly, but he was forced to endure the sight of Cole burning alive until the shrieks stopped. And when they did, they took their boots off his calves and forced him to stand and walk—stupid enough to give him back his legs—so he showed them the fury of _true_ fire.

"You _fucking sick bastards!"_

Everyone on the stand was down in seconds. He could smell the charred body, the flesh and blood of a boy who'd been too smart and kind for this sick place. Sanji couldn't even stand to look at it, nor did he have time. His flexibility proving useful, he dropped to the ashy floor and shifted his bound hands to the front of his body. He was up again quick enough to dispose of the next wave of enemies. He used a knight's sword—unsheathed from the threat of Black Leg Sanji—to cut his binds, before pounding him with an enraged kick, knocking him straight off the stand.

Then he unhooked his flare gun, pointed it upwards towards the free sky, and fired.

The crowd shrieked as he ran—furiously battling his way out—Cole's agonized screams never leaving his mind.

* * *

"_Sanji!"_

Sanji opened his eyes and looked to Zoro, shocked. The swordsman's hands were on his hips, forcing him to stop. "I..."

"What the fuck are you doing?" Zoro asked him, confounded.

And he didn't know. He honestly just...

"I..." he started, then rubbed his brow in frustration. He lifted himself out of Zoro. "Shit..."

"Sanji," Zoro brought his hand up to the other's cheek and echoed his question more gently, seeking and searching Sanji's face. "What are you doing?"

Sanji didn't respond and he didn't look Zoro in the eye. Instead he stared off, seeing flames of death and hearing horrific screams of anguish. He was still there. He'd never left, not even in his dreams. And unable to be free even in his sleep had been toilsome and this... whatever he'd been doing here had just been his attempt at forgetting.

Zoro watched the cerulean glow of the aquarium lighting up Sanji's face, and normally it would have been beautiful, but the coolness of the hues painted a deathly aura when matched with that haunted stare of his. He saw the cook's face twist up, wetness beginning to creep in around the lids of his blue eyes and one stream fell down his cheek.

He was quick to bring Sanji into him, wrapping his arms around him and forcing him closer. Sanji tentatively moved his hands around Zoro's shoulders and rested his head there for a moment. He turned his head to face away from Zoro, but still kept it on his shoulder.

"They hated pirates," he spoke at last, his eyes trembling with the memory of shrieks and flames. "They hated pirates with mad corruption... and darkness. Like they had no souls." He clenched his jaw tight as he admitted, "And I would've gladly watched them all burn."

Zoro stared off behind Sanji, the calmness in his eyes betraying what was really going on inside. To hear him talking like that was deeply unsettling, and it made his chest feel heavy. "Even the women?" he asked, trying to bring the cook back to the reality of what he'd just said.

"No," Sanji denied. "Not the women."

Zoro laughed softly, "Never the women." He slipped his hands up through Sanji's shirt, wanting to stroke his skin to remind Sanji of where he was as the cook dug into his memories.

"I met a boy..." he began, "He was a scouter and he'd seen our flag, knew we were pirates. But he was different... gave me his word that he wouldn't tell a soul."

Zoro's eyes narrowed. "And you trusted him?"

"I did, after talking with him a little. And I was right to trust him. He never betrayed me," Sanji said, his brows creasing. "But..." His grip tightened on Zoro's shoulder. "I was wrong to put myself into his life."

His features widening, Zoro tilted towards the cook's head on his shoulder and he combed a hand through his blond strands.

"I was so stupid," Sanji whispered painfully. "He offered to lead me around town, helped me carry back the food and we talked outside of the city. He was smart, and he was kind. Nothing like the rest of them. We thought we were alone. And we talked about things that..." His voice faltering, Sanji's lip trembled as he pressed his cheek further into Zoro's shoulder. "Fuck—I was so _stupid_, Zoro..."

Zoro kept stroking the skin of Sanji's lower back as he listened. His hand hesitated when he felt the cook trembling; felt his chest shivering.

"We went back in one more time," Sanji went on. "I was going to leave after that. And we were captured. At first I thought he'd betrayed me, but..." He wouldn't forget that piercing feeling in his chest when he'd heard it. "They called him a traitor, and they tied him up to the stake. I was so shocked, I..." he frowned, "...let my guard down. They held me there, on the stand, and I had to watch them..."

Zoro wrapped his arm around Sanji's lower back and held him tight, closing his eyes. So that was what the plume of smoke had been, and this was the pain of what he'd seen.

"...watch them... I watched the kid _burn_ and I—I couldn't _do_ anything—I should've _done_ something...!" he choked out.

Sanji was trembling against him, and Zoro felt the warm wetness paint his bare skin before cooling and settling.

"If you _could_ have done something, you would have," Zoro stated softly. "How many times do I have to tell you not to worry about things you can't change."

At this, Sanji sat up, staring into Zoro's eyes with moistened cheeks. He stared at him, utterly vexed. "This isn't me _worrying. _This is much, much—_more_ than that!"

"You're angry, you're hurt, you feel helpless and guilty, you're hating yourself..." Zoro candidly listed off every emotional vibe that he was absorbing right now. "...but it's all because of other people's actions. And I can't understand that."

Sanji eyes were hard as they tore into Zoro's. "You're just too cold to understand, aren't you? He died because of _me —_"

"_No_," the swordsman said, piercing right through Sanji's words. "You're wrong. He died because of _them_ and their hatred. He didn't die because of you, he helped you of his own free will and he died for that, to _save_ you."

Sanji's mouth parted, but he said nothing.

So Zoro went on. "There's a lot of honour in that. It would be better for you to honour his death by understanding it. That kid probably wouldn't want you remembering what he died for so stupidly."

With a plain expression, Zoro flicked Sanji's forehead to conclude his point. But Sanji caught his hand and squeezed, leaning into his face.

"You weren't there," he said stubbornly.

"I'm here now," Zoro shot back. "And I've heard enough to know what I'm talking about." He lifted a thumb to Sanji's cheek and wiped away the wetness there. "Those people are cruel. You can't change that. What they did to that boy was cruel. You can't change that either. All you can do now is step out of the past and move on. Live and remember the kid who saved you. Don't let their hate affect you like this, cook."

Sanji leaned into Zoro's hand with a soft smile. His brought his hand up to enclose Zoro's. He was right. Zoro was totally right. He was letting the darkness of that island overcome him. And seeing the dawn of tomorrow was far more significant than being stuck in the darkness of night. Remembering Cole's death in a new light was much more bearable than seeing those black flames in his nightmares.

Moments later, Sanji's smile became taunting as he pushed back against Zoro's neglected erection. "You only want me to move on because you're hard as a rock behind me."

At this, Zoro blushed. "What the _hell _do you expect after what you did to me?"

Sanji laughed, nodding. Couldn't argue with that one. Then he yawned, starting to really feel the fatigue from his lack of sleep.

"Don't you dare leave me like this," Zoro warned, his dick practically throbbing, he was so hard.

"I won't, shitty perv."

"_You're_ calling _me_ the perv!?"

"Shh, don't yell so loud, moron!" Sanji scolded, looking around like there were enemies in the room. Then he asserted in a whisper, "I'll suck you off and we'll go to bed, okay?"

Though Zoro couldn't much disagree with that, he felt the need to make sure it was truly all right with the cook. He looked down at the other's limpness. "You don't want me to...?"

"No," Sanji declined, shaking his head. As he shifted downwards to Zoro's arousal, he smirked, licking his lips as he teased with repetition: "Don't worry about it."

Grinning, Zoro leaned back and closed his eyes as he felt the heat of Sanji's mouth enswathe the sensitive skin of his cock. It was pure bliss as Sanji's fingers toyed with his balls and his tongue circled euphorically around the head of his cock. Zoro opened his eyes again to the arousing sight of Sanji bobbing up and down his shaft, and he grunted in his temptation to thrust with the blond's wet slides along his dick.

Eventually he gave in and moved with Sanji's mouth. Sanji rubbed his free hand along Zoro's upper leg and thigh, massaging, and in combination with everything else it felt rapturously good. Again, the cook's tongue made wet circles around his head, and Zoro held his breath from the stiffening pleasure shooting straight into his tip.

"Keep doing that," he groaned out.

Sanji complied with a naughty sort of smirk and ran his tongue aggressively around Zoro's foreskin and head. Both hands were rubbing the swordsman's thighs now, wandering and up around his midsection, then back down. Zoro's face subtly twisting up in restrained pleasure was utterly arousing and he was relatively glad when he felt the swordsman's muscles tense up, because any longer and he might've been forced to take Zoro up on his earlier offer.

Having reached his peak from the combination of a neglected erection and his current indulgence with Sanji's aggressive rhythm, the power of his orgasm was unavoidable. His lungs shuddered and brought on ragged breaths when he came hard into Sanji's mouth.

As Zoro's heat spurted into his mouth, Sanji swallowed it quickly before removing his lips from the swordsman's length. He licked his lips and rubbed Zoro down a few times before climbing back up to sit on his lap with his legs sprawled across the couch. Sanji wrapped one arm around Zoro, feeling his heated breaths cool down into normalcy again.

"That was good," Zoro commended, sighing.

Sanji looked into brown eyes and felt suddenly overwhelmed with the desire to kiss him. He tilted in and delivered a fierce kiss which soon fizzled out into something tenderer. He hummed against Zoro's mouth before separating their lips.

"Consider it a thanks," he mumbled, lips still hovering over Zoro's.

As Zoro peered into blue irises which brilliantly reflected the hues and shadows of the aquarium, he immediately noticed that Sanji looked look so much more alive. "Thanks for what?"

And the cook smiled as he leaned in for another kiss. "For worrying, dipshit."

* * *

With the dawn of the next day, Sanji stood early in the morning, smoking a cigarette as he watched the sun's magnificent rise. He pictured a boy in that sun, rising from the ashes and becoming a far more splendid sight for the world to see with the freedom to roam the earth, shining his light on every stretch of land and sea. A true explorer.

That day, it was obvious to everyone on board that their cook had returned to them.

* * *

**AN:** I just... don't even ask...


End file.
